


Checks and Balances

by MidtownMalibu (HogwartsToAlexandria)



Series: Marie's Starker+ Shorts [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Aftercare, Dom Tony Stark, Dom/sub, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, SSC, Safewords, Sub Peter Parker, Subspace
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-13
Updated: 2019-07-13
Packaged: 2020-06-27 11:57:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19790392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HogwartsToAlexandria/pseuds/MidtownMalibu
Summary: Peter uses his safeword for the first time and feels guilty about it. Based off a prompt from @sugar-peter you can findhere.Starker Bingo 2019 Fill, N4: "Shibari"(implied)





	Checks and Balances

**Author's Note:**

> A ficlet inspired by @sugar-peter in their quest for this exact type of plot bunny, I hope you'll like it :)
> 
> Cheer read by the lovely SpeckledCoffeeCups and Kass 💜

They're in Tony's bedroom. There's lengths of rope in various places of the room, bright and shiny toys scattered around like clothes you shed and yet, all of Tony's attention is centered elsewhere. 

On Peter's back as he kneels facing away from him, his hands tied together and joined at his ankles behind him. 

It's usually a pretty sight - all that cream pink skin bare save for the knots Tony's spent time adorning it with. Peter's trembling and it could be nothing but the usual shake of his nerves as subspace fully descends on him but Tony clicks his tongue. 

Something feels off, Peter's not right. 

They haven't done anything particular or out of what they call ordinary but the way Peter's nails are digging in his palms when his fingers should be relaxed, totally pliant at this point - Tony gets up from his seat at the end of the bed and goes to circle back to Peter's front, to get a look at his boy's face and that's when he hears it. 

It's so faint even the sound of his steps could have drowned it if Tony wasn't listening for it already. If he hadn't seen the signs that Peter needed something else than what he was getting right now. 

_ "Karen," _ Peter is saying, over and over but with barely formed letters, barely any volume to carry the phonemes of the name, his safeword. 

Tony's standing in front of Peter and Peter looks up, repeats with a voice that quakes and wrecks Tony's heart - "Karen." 

His eyes are full of tears as they look into Tony's but where he could have seen sadness or disappointment or even anger, Tony finds guilt. 

He kneels right where Peter is, cups the man’s face, "Shh, don't cry, sweetheart. It's okay, we'll undo the ropes, okay? We'll stop." 

Tony caresses Peter's cheeks, rubbing a stray tear into his skin, "Pete? I need you to give me a sign here. Undoing the ropes, okay? Nod if you're with me, can you do that?"

Peter does, he nods his head between Tony's large palms and Tony gives him what he hopes is a quick but reassuring kiss. 

"Good, thank you baby, let's do that."

He gets to work undoing the knots that keep everything together. Practice make it an easy matter. 

Once the ropes are down Tony gathers Peter in his arms and gets up, lifting him before taking the few steps to the bed and putting him down again. Peter whimpers. 

"I'm right here, love, see?" Tony gets on the bed as well, cradling Peter to his chest as he lays back against the propped up pillows. "Show me your wrists, beautiful." 

Tony starts massaging the man's wrists in circle, getting his blood to flow nice and warm in his veins again, unrestricted. Peter's face is wedged in Tony's armpit and Tony knows he's trying to hide his tears. He also knows that's not a thing they do. 

He sits up, the motion forcing Peter to follow. Peter tries to hide his face in Tony's neck this time. 

"No, no, Peter don't hide from me," Tony cups his face again, getting him to look at him. Except Peter's eyes are forcibly closed now that his face is visible again. "Peter," 

Tony keeps his voice barely above a whisper. "You need to come back to me now baby. I'm proud of you, I'm so so proud of you for using your safeword with me. It's so good, you are so good. I need you to look at me."

Peter's face scrunches up in something that looks so much like pain but is also frustration and Tony sees it now, anger, directed towards himself. "But...but Tony--"

"Why do we have safewords and signs, baby?" Tony interrupts, tries as much as he can to steer Peter away from the pitfall he's looking down in. "Tell me," he asks again, more firmly when all he's met with is silence. 

Peter's eyes shoot open. His big brown eyes are flooded with tears that make them look so much shinier, so much shallower, like their brown comes to meet Tony's own. Breathtaking and terrible all the same. 

"So I'm safe." Peter manages to croak. Tony nods and his resolve to let Peter come to him shatters. Not when his boy looks like this. 

"That's right," Tony wraps his arms around both Peter's neck and his waist until the man's sitting with his legs around Tony's back and his face is stuck to the sweaty skin of his throat. "Damn right, Pete. So you're safe, so that no matter what we're doing, you'll always have a way to tell me you're not okay, or you're not getting what you need, or you're not enjoying yourself or you don't want what I'm offering. It's so so good that we have those and I'm so proud," Tony rubs at Peter's back, attempts, not for the first time, to mold their bodies together into one new lump of matter that would be them, only them, "I'm so proud of you, I will not allow you to feel guilty about using your words, you hear? So proud, my gorgeous, perfect baby." 

The sob that leaves Peter's lips right then is heartbreaking again and yet, Tony knows they're getting somewhere this time. Just as Peter needed to use the guard of his safeword, he needed to hear what Tony just said, possibly more than that, too. It will do for now. That, and the way Tony maneuvers on the bed until they're lying on their sides and he can throw one of his legs over Peter's - surrounding him in his warmth and love as best he can. 

"So proud of you, so perfect for me."

**Author's Note:**

> More to come soon :)
> 
> Also, find me on [Tumblr!](https://midtownmalibu.tumblr.com/)
> 
> I love prompts so don't hesitate :)


End file.
